


Familiar Strangers

by banemmanan



Category: The Musketeers (2014)
Genre: Public transport, Trains, modernau
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-12-29
Updated: 2014-12-28
Packaged: 2018-03-04 03:04:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 497
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2906930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/banemmanan/pseuds/banemmanan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Forming friendships through public transport.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Familiar Strangers

**Author's Note:**

> Written for this prompt: http://bbcmusketeerskink.dreamwidth.org/2286.html?thread=2540014#cmt2540014

   Porthos had never known a morning that the man did not get on the train two stops down from where he himself alighted. Porthos had neither known a morning that this man had not had with him a coffee and looked to be extremely dishevelled. Porthos had yet to decide whether this man was very tired or hung over. This man seemed to be the only constant thing in the sea of ever changing, cold faces that used the train to get to work from day to day and so Porthos had taken to nodding good morning to this man every day, getting a tired incline of the head in return.

   Whenever Porthos got off the train the man would still be in his spot, leaning against the pole, never sitting down, available seats or no. Porthos sometimes wondered where he worked, he didn’t know of many jobs in the areas further down the lines, but shrugged it off, there were small businesses all over the place if you looked hard enough.

***

   Monday morning and Porthos felt like curling in on himself and going back to sleep. His best mate Charon had had his stag night the night before and Porthos regretted drinking so much. He’d attempted to leave off the alcohol at the beginning of the night, knowing that he had work in the morning, but soon he was caught up in the fun and was downing shots like they were water.

   The train stopped at a platform and the man walked on, going to his usual position leaning against the pole directly in front of Porthos. Porthos could barely bring himself to look up and nod his greeting due to the brightness of the sun coming through the windows but did so anyway. The man seemed to be looking at him with some mixture of sympathy and understanding. Porthos lowered his head again and went back to massaging his aching head. He felt something touch his shoulder lightly and the smell of coffee invaded the air around him. He looked up to see the man offering him his coffee cup.

   “Don’t worry, I haven’t drunk any yet.” The man said, his lips twitching into something resembling a small smile.

   The man’s voice had a lilt to it which suggested that despite his appearance, he’d had a rather well off upbringing. Porthos managed a smile of his own and took the offered beverage.

   “Thanks.” He said. And he really meant it, the coffee seemed to soothe his headache slightly and he felt a little more human than he had that morning, “I’m, uh, Porthos by the way.” He said looking up at the man again.

   “Athos.” The man offered in reply but didn’t seem so keen on conversing so Porthos left it at that, settling into a comfortable silence.

   As he got off the train he gave another glance at Athos and a nod of thanks before stepping off the train and onto the bustling platform.


End file.
